Modern Creativity

Morphologic polarity is necessary for chemotaxis of mammalian cells. serves as

Morphologic polarity is necessary for chemotaxis of mammalian cells. serves as an asymmetrically distributed binding site for either probe (5, 6). Here, TTP-22 supplier we stably expressed PHAKT-GFP in an immortalized mammalian cell line, HL-60, which can be induced to differentiate into neutrophil-like cells (7, 8). PHAKT-GFP, localized mostly in the cytoplasm of unstimulated differentiated HL-60 cells (Fig. 1A, I), translocated to the plasma membrane when the cells were exposed to a uniform concentration (100 nM) of either of two neutrophil chemoattractants, MLP) (Fig. 1A, I) and C5a (see below; Fig. 4B, VII). This translocation, seen in virtually every cell [96%, Web figure 4D (9)], was rapid and transient, reaching a peak after ~30 s and decreasing over the ensuing 2 min [supplemental figures and videos show the time course of PHAKT-GFP translocation (9)]. Open in a separate window Fig. 1 Translocation of PHAKT-GFP to the plasma membrane of neutrophil-differentiated HL-60 cells. (A) PHAKT-GFPCexpressing cells (I through III), C5aR-GFPCexpressing cells (IV), and GFP-expressing cells (V) were differentiated to neutrophil-like cells (7) and plated on glass cover slips as described (4). Cells were stimulated either with a uniform increase in toxin-B and (B) a PI3K inhibitor, LY 294002 (14). (A) Neutrophil-differentiated cells (7), plated on glass cover slips (4), were stimulated sequentially with toxin-B (90 g/ml). Panels I, IV, and VII: cells before stimulation with agonists (zero time). Images were recorded as described in the legend of Fig. 1. Stimulation times with the indicated agonists were as follows: II: 65 s; III: 115 s; V: 67 s; VI: 178 s; VIII: 39 s; IX: 161 s. Bars, 10 m. (B) Aftereffect of LY 294002 on chemoattractant- and insulin-induced plasma membrane translocation of PHAKT-GFP in neutrophil-differentiated HL-60 cells. Sections I, IV, and VII: neglected cells activated with insulin, toxin or LY 294002 at 100 or 300 M. Inside a gradient of MLP, given by a close by micropipette (10), PHAKT-GFP was recruited specifically towards the elements of a cells surface area that received the most powerful excitement (Fig. 1A, II and III). Certainly, translocation of PHAKT-GFP firmly followed actin polymerization and formation of a pseudopod at the leading edge (11) [for videos of this figure, see (9)]. Enrichment of PHAKT-GFP fluorescence at the leading edge contrasted with the uniform distribution of a plasma membrane marker, a GFP-tagged chemoattractant receptor for C5a (C5aR-GFP) (4) expressed in HL-60 cells (Fig. 1A, IV) and the exclusively cytosolic signal seen in HL-60 cells expressing GFP alone (Fig. 1A, V) (11). The internal gradient of PHAKT-GFP distribution is steeper than that of the extracellular stimulus that elicited it (Fig. 1B). From experiments with a fluorescent dye, sulforhodamine (12), we estimate that Femtotips micropipettes generate gradients that are reproducibly linear and rather shallow (~15% decrease in maximum dye concentration per 10 m) (Fig. 1B, I). We estimate that the gradient of TTP-22 supplier internal cellular signal was at least six times steeper than that of the chemoattractant itself (Fig. 1B, I and II). The asymmetry of the distribution of PHAKT-GFP probably reflects a parallel asymmetry of signals responsible for restricting actin polymerization to the cells leading edge. Neutrophils also polarize their morphology, albeit in random directions, when exposed to a uniformly increased concentration of chemoattractant (1, 2, 4). Such a uniform increase in MLP concentration similarly induced asymmetric recruitment of PHAKT-GFP to the pseudopod (morphologic leading edge) in about 50% of polarizing cells (13). Recruitment of PHAKT-GFP correlated with the direction of membrane protrusion and the underlying actin polymerization, as revealed by the ruffled TTP-22 supplier leading edge [Fig. 2, A through D; for a video of this figure, see (9)]. These observations show the intrinsic capacity of neutrophils to create asymmetric internal signals, not only in shallow chemoattractant gradients, but even in the presence of a uniform concentration of chemoattractant. Open in a separate window Fig. 2 (A through D) Asymmetric translocation of PHAKT-GFP at the plasma membrane of neutrophil-differentiated HL-60 cells during polarization in response to a uniform increase in chemoattractant concentration. Differentiated cells (7) were plated on glass cover slips as described (4). Cells were stimulated with 100 nM (5)this was not the case, however. Exposure of HL-60 cells to latrunculin-B (14), a toxin that sequesters monomeric actin, caused depolymerization of the dynamic actin cytoskeleton, producing a rounded morphology within 3 to 5 5 min (Fig. 3A). These cells still recruited PHAKT-GFP Rabbit polyclonal to EHHADH asymmetrically to the face closest to a pipet containing MLP (Fig. 3B). Thus, TTP-22 supplier the signaling.